It might be a bit late in the day but! If you use your real name on the net you are risking your own security! I would advise people to keep using their Mudcat names! I see it like this if Tyke is going to Bedworth for the weekend. No one who I do not know will be able to work out my home address. As Tyke they know my home is empty but they do not know where it is!

Also I hate to have to tell you this but there are some very funny people about and I'm not talking about Morris Dancers. You may know that I have a couple of Web Sites if visit those sites and look at the bottom of the Coblers Monday home page you will find rainbow-coloured object called a Sitemeter. This device lets me know who and when people visit this web site. It collects all sorts of information! Although it will not tell me exactly who the visitor is (unless I pay for that information) it will tell me where they came from, what system they are using and the time zone that they are in.

What I do know is that some of the visitors are commercial operators who make money collecting likely any looking email address from the web. Information is a valuable commodity! Do not give it away! I have gone to the trouble of setting up an alternative email address just to give to anyone who might then sell that on to a third party. I do not want Spam mail on my main email address so I only give it to people I trust.

I'm I being a pessimist NO my Glass is half full! I'm just being careful and web wise. You would be surprised at the scams that are going on! One con is to offer to invest 6 million pounds of third world Arms Deal Bribe money in the (Now get this! I nearly wet myself) Coblers Monday Sea Shanty Business. What who ever it was wanted was my bank details. I personally do not trust using my credit card on the net. I have had refunds on two fraudulent uses of its number being used to top up someone's Mobile Phone. So for goodness sake use a Mudcat name AND KEEP YOURSELVES SAFE!